Singles constitute more than 44% of the
adult population in the nation.

About 44% of the
nation's workforce are unmarried employees

The Census Bureau estimates that about 10%
of adults will never marry.

Households:

A
majority of the nation's households are headed by unmarried
adults

Married couples with minor children live in
fewer than 25% of the nations households.

Single adults living alone comprise about
27% of the nations households.

Another 13 million single adults are living
with unmarried relatives.

Nearly 6% of the nations households
are composed of two unrelated adults living together, with 68% of these households
containing partners of the opposite sex.

Hispanic households are the most likely to
contain a married couple:

Singles tend to be renters rather than home
owners. Of the nations 65 million owner-occupied units, 69% are occupied by married
couples. Of the nations 34 million rental units, only 38% are occupied by married
couples.

Unmarried Cohabitation:

Of people who have recently married, the
majority had cohabited together prior to marriage.

Opposite-sex cohabitation is increasing
rapidly, with a 28% increase between 1990 and 1994.

In 1970, there was one unmarried couple for
every 100 married couples in the nation.

In 1995, there were seven unmarried couples
for every 100 married couples in the nation.

Older Adults:

According to a study done by the American
Association of Retired people: 15 million older adults live alone; another 1.5 million
older adults live with a roommate or partner.

People with
Disabilities

According to the Disability Statistics
Rehabilitation Research and Training Center, of the 32 million adults in the United States
who have disabilities, some 13 million (40%) are unmarried.

Marriage rate:

The marriage rate in the U.S. dropped to 9
marriages per 1,000 population in 1993, the lowest rate in 30 years.

Divorce:

Rate:

The divorce rate has remained fairly stable
since 1988.

It was 2.5 divorces per 1,000 population in
1966, 5.3 divorces per 1,000 population in 1981, and 4.6
divorces per 1,000 population in 1993.

Numbers:

In 1970, 3.0% of the adult population was
currently divorced.

In 1994, 9.0% of the adult population was
currently divorced.

In 1997, 9.8% of the adult population was
currently divorced.

Nonmarital childbearing:

In 1980, one in five births was nonmarital;
in 1992 almost one in three births were to unmarried women. This a 54% increase in only 12
years.

In 1998, the Census Bureau reported that a
MAJORITY of first-born children in recent years were either conceived by, or born to,
unmarried parents.

In
2009, 41% of all births were to unmarried mothers

Premarital sex:

virgins at time of
marriage:

Of those born between 1933 and 1942:22% of men & 54% of women were virgins.

Of those born between 1963 and 1974:16% of men & 20% of women
were virgins.

unmarried cohabitation
prior to marriage:

Of those born between 1933 and 1942: 84% of men & 94% of women did
not cohabit.

Of those born between 1963 and 1974:34% of men & 35% of women did not
cohabit.

Single parent families:

Half of all children in the nation will
spend some time in a single parent family.

9.1% of all households in the nation are
now single-parent families.

Public Opinion Polls:

American Enterprise,
7-1-95:

Premarital sex is always wrong:

1972: 71% said yes

1994: 51% said yes

1989 national survey found that:

Women having children out of wedlock is:

Acceptable: 27%

Unacceptable: 59%

A single parent family is:

Acceptable: 61%

Unacceptable: 22%

National Opinion Research
Center:

Premarital sex is wrong:

1937: 55.0% agree

1973:
47.0% agree

1959: 54.0% agree

1990:
40.0% agree

1969: 68.8% agree

1991:
37.0% agree

Marital status and
politics:

In the last three presidential elections, a
majority of unmarried adults voted for the Democratic nominee, while a majority of married
adults voted for the Republican nominee. In recent national elections,
about 35% of
voters were unmarried, with a large majority of unmarried voters favoring Democratic
candidates for Congress.